Dancing in the Dark ✓

28 | theo

The days of working on the documentary, and stressing over school work seemed to blend in and merge into each other, so the weekend and the film festival came earlier than expected. Just like previous years, Mr.Hórvath booked the school buses to transport the film team to the Film Festival. 

There was a bubbliness in the air, filled with anticipation and the heavenly scent of food. Among the carts were a hotdog cart, a popcorn cart, and even a coffee cart. This definitely was no small competition.

"Are we at a film festival, or a food fair?" Halima wondered out loud.

"Doesn't matter," Davi replied dreamily. "I'm going to eat either way."

As the crew wandered around the area, someone tapped my shoulder. "Nervous?"

I released a shaky breath and turned to Sasha. "Of course. That's Julia Leblanc. She and her film team from Montreal are amazing -- they were last year's winners, and placed second place the year before. I'm not saying that they don't deserve to win again, but this is my last Film Festival with this crew, and I just want it to end well. We've been aiming high for three years now, and I'm worried that we don't even place in the top three. Even Hiransh and Daisy themselves will be coming here today. I don't want to disappoint them."

She paused, then gave my hands a squeeze. "You must know, surely, how much they appreciate you? Whether we win or not, we worked hard, and tried our best."

I smiled bittersweetly. "But sometimes, don't we wish that our best was good enough?"

She returned a comforting smile. "This is why I respect people in the creative arts so much -- results are sometimes so subjective, despite the overwhelming passion everyone has. I don't think I could take it, honestly, getting up over and over again." 

I was about to point out how she was one of the strongest people I knew, when the host, clad in a dark blazer appeared on the stage in front, and tapped on the microphone for our attention. "Testing, one, two. Can you hear me? If you can, come closer please!"

The crowd huddled closer to the stage. Our film crew locked arms so that we didn't get separated -- a job done a little too well. Davi was nearly suffocating Lars as he clung onto him, and Halima had a tight grip around Sasha as Raphael squeezed his way in between Lars and I. I reached for Sasha's hand, realising how sweaty my palm was.

"Thank you for all of your entries to this year's Inter-High school Film Festival Film Festival!" The host boomed into the microphone. "To the seniors graduating this year, but still entered the competition, I must acknowledge your dedication. We had a handful of amazing entries this year, and it was a close competition. Thank you for the heartfelt stories in relation to the theme -- you have shown us how much creativity and talent you young bright minds hold. No matter the outcome today, I hope that some of you walk away today, truly wishing to contribute to the film industry, and preserve the art. Now, it's time to announce the winners!"

An excited yet nervous hush fell over the crowd, and my mind blocked out everything else except for the words 'Dancing in the Dark' and 'Theo Atkinson'. I shut my eyes too, overcome by a wave of anticipation, vaguely aware of distant cheers as the third place was announced. Halima was mumbling under her breath, no doubt a prayer. We continued to hold each other tightly, barely breathing. God help us if we didn't even place in the top three.

"And in first place, the reigning champions... Rewriting Our Stars, directed by Julia Leblanc!"

My head swam with disbelief. I was already wracking my mind for consolations in my head, planning on what to say to the team, when -- 

"This year is a special one, folks, because even after meticulous judging, we couldn't decide between the winners. Therefore, for this year's Inter-High school Film Festival, our joint winner is Dancing in the Dark, directed by Theodore Atkinson!"

Lars was the first one who reacted. "Win also."

That was followed by a very shrill, ear-piercing screech that came from none other than Davi. He started doing dancing around us, then led us up to the stage, continuing his extremely embarrassing shrieking.

I pulled myself together and ascended the steps, with the rest of the team trailing behind me, still caught in our daze of disbelief.

"Am I dreaming?" Raphael asked me, his eyes glossed over.

I pinched him, making him jump. I laughed. "Sorry, I wasn't sure. Had to make sure for myself."

When we got on stage, I shook hands with the host as Halima accepted the trophy. She nudged me towards the microphone, a glint of tears in her eyes. "Do your thing."

I chuckled and walked up to the mic stand. "Oh wow, thank you. This was very unexpected, so forgive my team for being a mess right now. Uh, I want to firstly thank Mr.Hórvath, our film teacher, for your honest feedback. Next, I want to thank Hiransh and Daisy for supporting us every step of the way, and believed in us on transferring their real life story to the screen. And of course, I have to thank my film crew, for working tirelessly alongside me. We have been dreaming of winning for three years now -- and we finally did it. Thank you, to everyone who believed in me, in us -- and also to those who didn't. We made it because of all of you. We will continue to work hard and strive to do our best in everything that we do. Thank you."

We descended the stage into the crowd's congratulating wishes, shaking from relief. I went from person to person, congratulating and thanking them.

I saw Davi run to a pair of familiar silhouettes in a distance, leading the film team towards them as well. As we neared, he was still hugging Hiransh, with Daisy grinning beside them, her eyes alight with joy.

I extended my hand, beaming. "Thank you so much for coming."

Daisy returned the smile and shook my hand. "No problem at all. NYC isn't that far, and we wouldn't miss this for the world. Congratulations, once again."

Hiransh nodded at that, and reached out to place a hand on my shoulder. "I would like to personally thank each one of you for making this possible. There has been a lot of speculation of what really happened, how events played out, and what Daisy and I went through to get to that final performance."

"Could we have an encore of your performance?" Raphael dared to ask.

Hiransh grinned and Daisy laughed lightly. "Sure, why not?"

The two danced together as one, attracting a crowd of onlookers. Daisy was confident in her leading, and Hiransh followed her steady steps. They really seemed to appear as if they had danced together for a lifetime. 

Raphael was already snapping pictures with his camera. "Okay, let's take some group pics too!"

"Is it on three or after three?" Davi demanded. "Like one, two, three or one, two, three, jump?"

"On three!" Raphael bellowed back."I know that some people have no sense of rhythm, but dang, you really set a new standard."

Halima grumbled, "We won the competition, and they're still bickering."

"Wouldn't change it for the world," I hummed, but then winced as Davi landed a jump on his bottom. "More or less. You get what I mean."

"Theo! Sasha! Your turn!" Raphael commanded.

"Yes, sir," I responded, making Sasha chuckle.

Davi placed his hands on his hips. "Tut, tut! Time is of the essence!"

"Run," Lars suggested, nodding towards the field. "Flowers."

So we ran through the field, whereby Raphael managed to capture quite a few impressive shots.

"Can we get food now?" Davi wailed.

"Hungry," Lars agreed.

I glanced at Sasha, her face flushed from the running and laughing. "Let's eat!"

Halima was looking around. "Where did Mr.Hórvath disappear to?"

Raphael slapped his forehead. "This happens every year. So much for being the adult."

I chuckled, taking in the chaotic scene before me. In a few months, the seniors would graduate, and we would be unsure of when we would meet again.

For the time being, instead of worrying about the uncertainty of the future, I promised myself to savour every second of the present.